Amor Española
by Vesja
Summary: ¡ON HIATUS UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE! - Mac and Gunny are sent to Spain. Harm's stuck in DC because he's got the flu. But that ain't stoppin' him from interfering with the investigation! Eventually Harm/Mac.


Author: Vesja

Title: Amor Española

Genre: General

Rating: PG-13/T, for later chapters etc.

Pairing: Harm/Mac eventually. 

Spoilers: None that I'm aware of.

A/N: This was created a while ago. Have fun!

_JAG HQ | 1943 ZULU – 1443 EST | May 27th_

_Mac's POV_

I woke up this morning with a weird feeling. Like something awkward was going to happen today. So far, nothing's happened. But you never know anything for sure over here. Huge things can change within seconds.

Today has been a good day so far. The weather is nice. The moment I take a sip of my coffee, the Admiral himself barges into my office.

"Colonel. My office. Now. And take your annoying friend with you." He looks rather tense and agitated.

"You mean Commander Rabb, sir?" I ask, while putting my cup of coffee back on my desk. Aargh. I really, desperately wanted some coffee.

"Who else could I possibly be talking about, Colonel? Now move it!"

"Aye-aye, sir." And with that, the Admiral leaves as quickly as he got into my office.

What in Pete's sake could be so important that the Admiral came to get me, and not Tiner, or Bud, or Harriet? Oh dear. I just realize, Harm's at home. He's got the flu. And right now the Admiral wants him and me in his office. I might as well go, before the Admiral comes back out and drags me inside. Although I'm sure Harm would like to see that. When I knock on the door, I hear 'enter' on the other side.

"Sir?"

"Colonel. Have a seat." The Admiral stares at me for a moment, and then he sighs.

"Where's Mr. Rabb this time, Colonel?"

"At home sir. He's got the flu."

"It was clear that he didn´t deem necessary to inform me about his absence..." the Admiral says as he scratches his head and grips a file that he has been holding in his hand since I came in just a little too tightly, "Well, then you'll just have to take the Gunnery Sergeant with you. You're leaving in 3 hours, Colonel." Leaving? Leaving? To where? For how long? Why? Calm down Mackenzie…

"Where to, sir?"

"Spain. There's a US Lieutenant there who's in allot of trouble. Harriet will fill you in. She's been a miracle, since Tiner has got the flu. Like Rabb, so you say. And Mr. Roberts."

"Will do sir. Should I tell the Gunny?"

"If you would be so friendly Colonel. Dismissed." The Admiral says, shaking his head, and writing something down. I can't make it out completely, but it says something about 'Rabb' and 'kill'. Oh dear.

"Aye-aye sir."

_SOMEWHERE ABOVE THE ATLANTIC | 0134 ZULU – 1934 EST – 0234 CET | May 27th (USA), May 28th (Spain)_

We're in a plane right now. It's heading for Madrid Barajas International Airport. The Gunny's and my mission is to get the Lieutenant, Jason Hellas, out of Spain and under arrest in name of the United States of America.

_Gunny's POV_

Wow. She's beautiful when she's sleeping. ¡Cretino, Galindez! ¡Cierra el pico! If she knew what I'm thinking right now, I'd be in some big trouble. Not only because of the frat regs, but also 'cause no-one wants to have Sarah Mackenzie against them. It's a good thing she can't read minds… Can she? I might as well get some sleep too, since we're on a red-eye-flight. All right, I know, all flights this way are REFs, but still… The time difference is, er, ZULU-5 until ZULU+1, which makes 6 hours. Goodnight Colonel. Ma'am.

_Mac's POV_

As Gunny falls asleep, I get a feeling of safety. I'd felt his eyes on me. It's just now that I realize what good friends we are. I mean, of course Harm and I are best friends, but the friendship between Victor and me is different. I don't think we could ever be driven apart. And I know Harm and I can. As Gunny's breath rate slows down I open my eyes and watch him sleep. He must've thought I was sleeping. I wasn't. He looks so peaceful. Thinking about sleep I suddenly get very sleepy myself, and love it. I, Sarah Mackenzie, the notorious insomniac is getting drowsy! I lean back in the rather uncomfortable airplane chair and close my eyes.

_MADRID BARAJAS INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT | 1047 ZULU - 1147 CET \ May 28th _

_"_Ma'am? What time is it?" Gunny asks, looking very sleepy.

"ZULU or Spanish time? Or East Coast?" I ask, dragging my luggage with me. I refused to have the Gunny help me. I mean, even though I'm a woman, I'm a marine! I can carry my own luggage! Even though this stupid suitcase is _very_ heavy. Why don't all civilians just use backpacks? They're so much easier!

"All please, ma'am," he says, whilst carrying his own bag with him.

"1047 ZULU, 1147 CET and 0447 East Coast, Gunny." The Gunny looks as if he's just lost all hope.

"Permission to speak freely, ma'am?"

"Granted."

"Damn."

As I am recovering from hearing the Gunny curse, a Spanish Lieutenant comes towards us.

"Lieutenant Colonel Sarah Mackenzie and Gunnery Sergeant Victor Galindez?" he asks with an enormous Spanish accent, so that I can hardly make out what he's saying.

"Yes." I answer.

"Muy bien. My name is Lieutenant Juan Castellano," he says, as he takes my suitcase. I'm actually pretty glad he took it. It was becoming pretty heavy. I brought a suitcase instead of a backpack because the Gunny and I are undercover. Did I tell you that? Well, this Lieutenant Jason Hellas has been stealing and selling US weapons all over the world. And, as you might have guessed, that's against the law. _When_ we find him, there'll be an Article 30 investigation. And Lieutenant Hellas knows that, so he's fled to Spain. The last place he's been seen is Madrid, so that's where we're going to start, with some help from the Spanish government. It's a good thing Gunny speaks Spanish, it might come in handy. He also told me how to say: 'I'm a US marine, and I know how to use this gun.' It's: 'Soy un marino ., y sé cómo utilizar esta arma.'

The moment we get out of the airport, Gunny nervously slips his arm behind my back and lets his hand rest on my hip. We're supposed to be newlyweds. Stupid Webb couldn't think of anything creative... He pulls me closer and whispers:"Relax ma'am, please." It's only now that I realize that I've been standing straight and tense, certainly not like a newlywed whose husband has just pulled her close.

"I'm sorry Gunny." I try to relax. But for some reason or another, I just can't. The Gunny must've sensed that, as he pulls me a little closer to him and moves his hand in a way that makes the muscles in my back relax. I look at his face and see that he's very scared and isn't sure if he should be doing this. Probably because of the frat regs.

"Better?" He asks.

"Yeah," I whisper. Hm. We're getting pretty good at this. We arrive at the hotel and Lieutenant Castellano leaves, since it'd be a little awkward if we were accompanied by a Lieutenant.

"Buenos días señor," the girl behind the desk says.

"Buenos días señorita. Do you speak English?" Gunny asks.

"Sí. A little. Do you have reservation?"

"Yes. Marc and Juliet Denver. We're here for..." Gunny wants to say something but the girl cuts him off.

"I see. Marc y Juliet Denver. Aquí para su luna de miel. Congratulations! Here is your key. And please, how say, telefonear if you need anything. Have a nice stay!"

As we walk away from the desk, I ask the Gunny: "What did that Spanish sentence mean?"

"Aquí para su luna de miel?"

"Yes."

"Here for your honeymoon."

I blush.

_MARC AND JULIET DENVER'S HOTEL ROOM | 1124 ZULU - 1224 CET | May 28th_

"Ma'am? Do you want to shower first?" Gunny asks.

"Sure." I go into the bathroom, "Oh and quit the ma'am while we're here please. In case someone hears us."

"Yes... Colonel," Gunny says with a sheepish grin on his face.

"Gunny!"

_HOTEL RESTAURANT | 1812 ZULU - 1912 CET | May 28th_

Gunny is sitting across the table. He's eating some kind of rice thingy. I myself couldn't resist trying paella. I've never eaten it before! But I really like it.

"Marc?"

"Yes... Honey?" Gunny asks, relieved that he can use a word somewhat like 'ma'am' at the end of his sentence.

"What is it called again?" I ask, shoving some paella into my mouth, spilling some on the tablecloth. I curse silently and start cleaning it up. Sort of. Gunny looks at me in confusion.

"Your dinner, Marc."

"Oh. Arroz a la cubana. It's rice with eggs and banana. It's really good." Gunny smiles.

_Gunny's POV_

She smiles back at me, brushing a strand of hair out of her face. I still have to get used to not saying 'ma'am' to her. You know what, I think we've become really good friends here. I know that we've only been here for one day, but still.

_MARC AND JULIET DENVER'S HOTEL ROOM | 2102 ZULU - 2202 CET | May 28th_

"It's a good thing the Admi... boss gave us today off. The only thing that keeps me thinking normally is my internal clock. Ugh. I hate jetlags!" the Colonel says as she enters our room after me.

"What time is it?" I ask.

"2103 ZULU, so 2203 local," she answers without thinking. Her internal clock still amazes me.

"Then we might want to get some sleep."

"Good idea marine." She runs into the bathroom, yelling:"Me first!"

Half an hour later both she and I have showered and changed into our pajamas. I'm wearing a marine green T-shirt and a pair of boxers. She's wearing a burgundy red nightgown. It looks really good on her.

"So," she says, stepping into the bedroom, "Which side do you want?" She points at the bed. I haven't really thought about it. I was expecting her to make me sleep on the couch.

"Ehm, I'll take this side," I say, pointing to the side the closest to the door.

"All right. I'll be back in a minute!" She runs to the bathroom. Women... I get into my side of the bed and close my eyes. It's a nice bed. It's really soft. I can hear her feet when she re-enters the bedroom. I don't open my eyes. She gets into the bed. After a while her breath rate slows down. And I thought she was an insomniac...

_COMISARÍA DE_ _MADRID (MADRID POLICE STATION) | 08:52 ZULU - 09:52 LOCAL | May 29th_

I can't believe Mac is this awake. I mean, it's, like, 4 in the morning or something back home! There's this Spanish police officer telling us something in Catalan, but I don't speak Catalan. I'm in Spain! I want to hear Spanish or English! Another police officer starts translating, since the other has stopped.

"We have last seen señor Hellas in Barajas, the international airport. He was seen taking a cab. As soon as we could we interrogated the cab driver. El told us that he hadn't known that it was señor Hellas. He had to drive mister Hellas to the hotel you both are staying in. But as you might have noticed, he isn't there anymore." Mac... Wait, I'm calling her Mac... Oh well... I guess she still can't read minds... Mac is listening intensive. Not too weird since the officer is speaking English, but her accent is terrible. I can hardly make out what she's saying.

_HARM'S APARTMENT, WASHINGTON D.C. | 14:13 ZULU – 09:13 EST | May 29th _

_Harm's POV_

Oh my god. My head hurts like hell. I'll have to go and find myself some aspirin. I'm pretty sure it's around here… Somewhere, somehow… I get up from my bed and go into the bathroom. I don't like the sight I see in the mirror. Now where did I leave that…? Ah! Found it! Now let's get into the kitchen and get you a glass of water, Rabb.

_COMISARÍA DE MADRID (MADRID POLICE STATION) | 14:17 ZULU – 15:17 CET | May 29th _

_Mac's POV_

Okay Mackenzie. Let's summarize this up. Mr. Hellas took a cab from Barajas to Caldera, a café. There, he was seen by the bartender and one of the singers. The singer had spoken with him for a while. She said that he was fluent in Spanish, but he still made some grammar mistakes. She also mentioned his 'enormous' Italian accent and that he had an scar above his right eye

The bartender said that he had ordered a whisky. At approximately 23:00 local time he had left and paid a 20% tip, which came to about €15! The bartender smiled. But he stopped smiling when Gunny told him that Mr. Hellas was sought by the Madrid Police Department and the CIA. Then the bartender told us that: 'Señor Hellas left Caldera, díos mio, and, how say, stop taxi and go.' So, we're back where we started.

"Colonel? Are you all right?" Gunny asks.

"Yeah. I'm fine. Just thinking," I say.

"Now you must leave. It would be awkward if newlyweds spent so much time at the comisaría," the English-speaking police officer says. Her name's Juanita Perez. Gunny offers me his arm and we leave.

_MARC AND JULIET DENVER'S HOTEL ROOM | 16:38 ZULU – 17:38 CET | May 29th _

Gunny and I enter the room. It's only now that I really take a look at the room. It's quite nice. There's blue carpet on the floor. All the furniture is made of wood, but it's very modern. The fabric is gray. It's pretty modest. I like it. I go into the bedroom. Gunny stays in the 'living room'. As I enter the bedroom, my suitcase seems to have disappeared.

"Marc?" I yell, patting myself on the back for having called him by his 'name'.

"Yes? What's wrong?" Gunny asks, coming into the bedroom.

"My suitcase seems to have disappeared…!"

"Oh yeah, that's right. I laid it under the bed because it was quite in the way. I'm sorry. I should've told you." Gunny looks extremely guilty, brushing his hand through his hair.

"That's okay, I understand. Now would you please help me get it out? 'Cause I think it's stuck. I promise I'll put my clothing in the closet," I say, pulling at the suitcase under the bed.

"Yeah, sure." He walks over to me and together we try to get the suitcase out from under the bed. As it finally shoots loose I fall backwards, my head against the wall. The first thing I do is reach for my head, but I wince and stop. My shoulder must've hit the wall as well.

"Are you okay?" Gunny asks, looking worried. The marine in me wants to get up and act like nothing happened, but all I can get out of my mouth is: "No." Gunny immediately rushes to my side.

"Which shoulder?" he asks. I point to my right shoulder. He picks me up and I'm caught completely off guard. I didn't know he was this strong. He carries me to the couch and sets me down, without saying a word. But then, he says something I didn't expect at all.

"You're going to hate me for this." Before I even get the chance to ask why, Gunny firmly places his hands on my right shoulder and pulls.

"Crap! Ouch! Gunny! …" Then I realize that the pain's gone.

"Thanks."

"You're welcome."

After I return from the bathroom, I took a shower, Gunny says: "You know, there's a dance tonight. Do you want to go?" He has me startled for a moment. When I say nothing, he blushes and shakes his head.

"Er, sure…" He smiles.

"You want to go get an early dinner and change after that?" he asks, both of us hearing my stomach rumble. His smile changes into a big grin.

"Sure. On moment, let me do my hair." I run back into the bathroom and pull my hair up. When I come back, Gunny offers me his arm.

_HOTEL RESTAURANT | 18:02 ZULU - 19:02 CET | May 29th_

_Gunny's POV_

All right. We've finished eating. I must say, that paella was delicious. She's smiling, listening to the band playing. She looks happy, relaxed. The band finishes the song. A male singer walks towards the microphone. Allot of people are already on the dance floor.

"Want to dance?" I ask her, holding out my hand to her. She nervously smiles, then lays her hand in mine.

"Sure." I stand up from our table and take her to the dance floor. The singer starts singing. It's an English song that I've never heard before.

_'Someday, when I'm awful lone_

_And the world is cold_

_I will feel a glow, just thinking of you_

_And the way you look tonight.'_

He continues. In the meantime, Mac and I have gotten into a soft embrace. We are, as are all the other couples, waltzing. Or something like that. I didn't know she could do ballroom.

_'With each word, your tenderness grows_

_Tearing my fear apart._

_And that laugh, that wrinkles your nose_

_Touches my foolish heart.'_

She looks so beautiful. She lets her head rest on my chest as I pull her closer. More and more couples have come to the dance floor.

_'Lovely. Never, never change._

_Keep that breathless charm._

_Won't you please arrange it_

_'Cause I, I love you_

_Just the way you look tonight.'_

When the song is finished, the singer starts speaking Spanish rapidly.

"What'd he say?" Mac asks.

"That they're gonna do a salsa, a cha-cha-cha and a Paso Doble now."

"You know how to salsa?" she asks, with a seductive voice.

_HARM'S APARTMENT, WASHINGTON D.C. | 18:24 ZULU - 12:24 EST | May 29th_

_Harm's POV_

Wow. That nap really did me some good. My headache is gone, and, I believe, so is my nau...

_18:27 ZULU - 12:27 EST_

Never mind. Nausea still there. Hey! There's a message waiting for me! At least, that's what I believe the blinking light on my answering machine is trying to tell me. Now let's see...

_HOTEL RESTAURANT | 18:24 ZULU - 19:24 EST | May 29th_

_Mac's POV_

Dammit. Damn you, Mackenzie. Why did you _have_ to ask him that? Oh God. He's gonna think that I'm an idiot. A stupid controlling weirdo. I know it, I know it, I know it, I know it, I huh? What?

"Yes." WHAT?

"Huh?"

"Yes. I know how to salsa. Will you have this dance with me?" I smile and let him take me back to the dance floor, after slowly nodding.

The moment the song starts, I'm drawn into a universe in which only he, I, and music exist. He's an amazing dancer. He was right. He _does_ know how to salsa.

We go on for a while. That's when I notice that in the other universe, the real world that is, all of the other couples have stopped dancing and that everybody's watching us. I look up at him. He's pretty tall. Not _Harm-_tall, but, just, plain tall. He smiles. The band stops the salsa and starts a cha-cha-cha.

"I don't know how to cha-cha-cha," he whispers.

"Me neither," I say. He leads me to our table.

"Wanna leave and watch some TV?" he asks. I nod and together we go to our room.

_MARC AND JULIET DENVER'S HOTEL ROOM | 18:43 ZULU - 19:43 EST | May 29th_

_Gunny's POV_

We're back in our hotel room.

"I'll be right back. These heels are killing me!" she says, going through her suitcase, pulling some stuff out and going into the bathroom. I go through my backpack, searching for something other than anything like the suit I'm wearing right now.

"Marc? Marc?!" I turn around to see a shocked Sarah Mackenzie standing in the bedroom, her shoes in her hands.

"What's wrong?" I ask. She doesn't look just shocked. There's something else shown on her face, but I don't know what. Anxiety maybe?

"Have you seen this?" she asks, pointing towards the bathroom.

"What do you mean?" I ask, very interested in what she's found. She goes towards the bathroom and motions for me to follow her. She opens the cabinet under the sink. There's something taped on the inside. She carefully pulls it loose. It's a note. She reads it, but looks very confused. She hands it to me.

"Tan cercha que tu mano sobre mi pecha es mía. Tan cercha que se cierran tus ojos con mi sueño"

She raises an eyebrow.

"What does it mean?"

"So close that your hand on my chest is mine. So close that you close your eyes when I sleep," still a little bit confused.

"Why would that be taped on the inside of our bathroom cabinet with our _real_ names on it?" She looks at me, pointing towards the back of the note. It reads:

_**Para Teniente Coronel/Lieutenant Colonel Sarah Mackenzie y Sargento de Artilería/Gunnery Sergeant Victor Galindez.**_

"I wouldn't know. But what I do know is that that sentence was written by Pablo Neruda, Sonneto XVII." She looks as if she's thinking really hard. I lay my hand on her shoulder. She looks up at me.

"How about we take it to the Commisaría tomorrow?" I ask her. She nods.

"Would you mind leaving the bathroom? I'd like to take a shower," she says. I nod and leave the bathroom.

_Mac's POV_

I turn on the shower and strip my clothes. After 8 seconds I feel the temperature of the water. It's hot. Maybe a little too hot. Oh well... My back sure could use a hot shower right now. I let my hair down and step into the shower. The moment the water hits my back, I feel the muscles in my back relax. I really shouldn't have put on those high heels. But they looked so nice together with the dress, you know. And they make me taller, which makes me feel like I'm in control. I like being in control. I'm afraid of losing it. I've seen my dad lose control of himself when I was a child. It scared me then, and it still scares me now. I carry the scars of an abusive childhood, but I've learnt to hide them. The only people who've gotten through my walls are Harm, Harriet, the Admiral, Gunny, little AJ and Harm. Wait, I already mentioned Harm... Could it... No! Of course it's not a Freudian slip, Mackenzie! It's just a mistake. Just get a hold of yourself already! Geez... Well, I better get out of the shower, before I start wrinkling...

_JAG HQ | 19:36 ZULU - 14:36 EST | May 29th_

_AJ Chegwidden's POV_

Just as I'm leaning back in my chair, there's a knock at my door.

"Sir?" Harriet's head pops in.

"Yes Lieutenant? Enter." Harriet walks in carrying a big pile of books and files.

"Sir, Ha... The Commander is on line 2." Well, Mr. Rabb finally decided to inform me about his situation. I pick up the phone and press the button for line 2.

"Thank you Tiner." I wait for the familiar beep.

"Er... Sir?"

"Yes?"

"My name is Harriet." Now I realize what I've called Harriet. Uh-oh.

"Oh dear. I'm sorry Lieutenant." She smiles.

"It's okay sir. If I may be excused now." I nod. Harriet turns on her heels and makes her way out of my office, almost dropping the enormous pile.

"Commander?" I almost shout into the phone.

"Yes sir." I can hear that he's got a cold.

"Did you want something, Mr. Rabb?"

"Yes sir. I tried calling Ma... Colonel Mackenzie sir, but she isn't answering her phone." He sounds worried. I might as well tell him, since he'll otherwise find out anyway.

"That's not so strange, Commander. She's in Madrid, with the Gunny, helping to find a US Lieutenant." Harm grunts.

"This has Webb written all over it."

"Sort of. Webb, Lang, and the SECNAV." I can almost hear his astonishment.

"All right sir. Thank you for informing me. I'll probably be able to go back to work the day after tomorrow, sir." I laugh.

"That a Sunday, Rabb."

"Oh. Then I'll be back next Monday, sir."

"Ok. And, Rabb?"

"Yes sir?"

"Please keep to your own business and try not to kill Webb?"

"Aye-aye sir." I hang up. This should be interesting, Harm sticking to his own business and not interfering with someone else's, especially that of a certain Marine Colonel and that of an annoying Spook.

_**TBC**_


End file.
